questions & answers

Question: My wife is an adopted child, does that give my mother in law any rights? We currently have a 17 mo. old child together and are getting the finalization of a nasty divorce. The woman dislikes me and I feel she will negatively inflence my daughter.

Answer:

The law gives the parents of adopted children the same rights and obligation that parent(s) have with biological children. 

However, since your soon to be ex-wife is an adult or emancipated minor, the matter of whether or not she is adopted is really not applicable to your situation.  Grandparent rights, in most cases, do not override the parents rights in determining how a child should be raised.

Assuming the child was born during the marriage, parents are presumed to have equal rights over the child and how it should be raised.   These decisions include all aspects of the childs life, including who is allowed around the child. 

This situation may change once the divorce is finalized depending on what kind of custody is granted and to whom.